In the spring of 1854 James C. Mitchell, following the advice of the fur trader Peter A. Sarpy, platted a town named after his adopted daughter Florence, including the old buildings and improvements of an older settlement there.
[2] Nearly a decade before in 1846, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints established Cutler's Park as a hold-over on their way from Nauvoo, Illinois to Utah.
When that settlement was found to be wrongly located by a nearby United States Indian agent, it was relocated to a new site called Winter Quarters.
Winter Quarters had a mayor and city council, 24 policemen and fireguards, various administrative committees, and a town square for public meetings.
[4] The new town of Florence was built from the detritus of old Winter Quarters, and with support from eastern land speculators it grew quickly outfitting more Mormon migrants through 1866, as well as others traveling west on the Great Platte River Road.
It may not be generally known that, about seven miles north of Omaha, on the Missouri River, there is a small hamlet, yelped Florence, the proprietors of which have been, for months, laboring assiduously to delude strangers that it was a city.
These businesses boomed and busted with different financial panics, gold rushes, and government legislation making western migration in the United States more or less attractive.
In 1892, the Florence Boulevard was developed from Ames Avenue north to Read Street to lead traffic on calm country rides to the city.
[9] The Keirle House was built by a local businessman in 1905 at 3017 Mormon Street, and stands today as a testament to the city's one-time economic prowess.
Built by James C. Mitchell, some historic accounts asserted that Brigham Young lived in the house for a short period.